KANSAN.COM / THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN / WEDNESDAY. APRIL 7, 2010 / SPORTS
5B
BATTLE OF THE JAYS
BASEBALL GAMEDAY JAYHAWKS V. BLUEJAYS The first pitch will be thrown at 6:30 tonight in Omaha. KANSAS OPENING PITCH CREIGHTON
AT A GLANCE
After Tuesday's rain out, the Jayhawks (18-10-1, 3-2-1) come in with a 7-2-1 record in their last 10 games. Kansas and Creighton met only two weeks ago, on March 23 and played a tight contest at Hoglund Ballpark. The Jayhawks walked off with the 5-4 victory in the ninth, after the Bluejays put up a tough fight.
QUESTION MARK
How will freshman redshirt pitcher Thomas Taylor fare against a top-level opponent?
AT A GLANCE
For the most part, Taylor has started Kansas' developmental games, but the toughest opponent he has faced was Arkansas on Friday. Taylor saw mixed success against the Razorbacks, allowing only two hits and striking out four batters in three innings. But his control cost him an opportunity to pitch deep into the game, which has been his main issue this season. When Taylor has success locating his pitches, he has shown great potential that has Kansas excited.
BY THE NUMBERS
PLAYER TO WATCH
This is the second time this week the Bluejays will face a Big 12 team. The Bluejays avoided a sweep from the Indiana State Sycamores by winning the last game of the series 7-6 in the bottom of the ninth with T.J. Roemmich's game-winning single. Creighton is 13-8 and in fifth place in the Missouri/ Valley Conference.
The match-up against Creighton is an important non-conference challenge for the Jayhawks. Because Kansas will head to Austin to face No. 7 Texas this weekend, it needs to put together a complete, nine-inning effort to earn a victory, and get some momentum rolling before the three-game series against a ranked Big 12 opponent.
Junior left fielder Jimmy Waters
4-2 — Kansas' record in games started by Thomas Taylor
Waters
It's a homecoming game of sorts for Waters, who despite playing high school ball in Iowa, was born in Omaha, Neb. Waters has been Kansas' biggest power threat this season, leading the club with four home runs and 33 RBI, and he would love to add to those totals in front of his family, friends and former teammates.
GAME OUTLOOK
9-17 — Kansas' all-time record against Creighton
QUESTION MARK
Trever Adams could have a breakout game against the Jayhawks. In the last game between these two teams Adams had three hits and scored a run. This season, Adams leads Creighton in almost every offensive category. He also leads the team with a batting average of .367 and with 21 RBIs.
4 — Kansas' winning streak against Creighton
The Jayhawks have a great opportunity to continue the offensive success that they had over the weekend against Texas A&M. Look for Tony Thompson to break out of his slump after coming off a knee injury. The Bluejays were beaten by Indiana State twice in close ballgames because of a weak bullpen.
PLAYER TO WATCH
Can Kansas slug Creighton into submission?
BY THE NUMBERS
Adams
Ben Ward
10 Runners left on base by Kansas' pitchers in the last meeting between the Jayhawks and the Bluejays.
2 — Walks given up by the Creighton pitching staff against Kansas .271 — ERA of Creighton's pitching staff
Andrew Hammond
Brandon Macias
The strike zone has often been elusive for Taylor. He has totaled
Taylor comes into his seventh start of the season with a 2-0 record, but also carries a 5.23 ERA. He boasts a talented arm that has impressed coaching staff, and has shown flashes of his potential. But he has been plagued by a lack of control.
ROSENBLATT (CONTINUED FROM 1B)
would have faced against Missouri Valley College.
"I gave up way too many two-strike hits recently," Taylor said.
Taylor said he had been working with pitching coach Ryan Graves on his command, as well as mixing different pitches to maximize his effectiveness.
14 walks in 20.2 innings this season.
He has also hit five batters,
and lately has allowed a number of base runners after getting ahead in the count.
And regardless of the competition in the opposing dugout, Taylor's success from the mound will be determined by the quality of his outing.
"I think it's still the same approach," Taylor said. "I just need to throw a lot of strikes."
Edited by Katie Blankenau
NBA
Bobcats ensure non-losing season, first time in six years
Charlotte sealed win over Atlanta Tuesday,109-100
BY MIKE CRANSTON Associated Press
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Gerald Wallace scored 28 points, Boris Dawley nearly had a triple-double, and the Charlotte Bobcats ensured their first non-losing season in their six year history with a 109-100 victory over the banged-up Atlanta Hawks on Tuesday.
Diaw had 17 points, nine rebounds and nine assists, while a gimpy Stephen Jackson added 15 points for the Bobcats (41-36), who inched closer to their first playoff berth and can finish no worse than .500.
Atlanta's hopes of reaching 50 wins for the first time in 12 years were squashed as it fell behind by 20 points after the first quarter.
Maurice Evans scored 20 points and Jamal Crawford added 18 for the Hawks, who played without top scorer Joe Johnson (sprained
thumb) and point guard Mike Bibby (ingrown toenail).
Johnson, averaging 21.2 points,
didn't travel with the team and
will miss his third straight game
Wednesday in Detroit after first
being injured last week.
Atlanta got within nine on several occasions in the fourth quarter, but Wallace and Diaw were there to end the Hawks' comeback hopes as Charlotte split the season series in a possible first round playoff preview.
The Bobcats took advantage, building leads of 34-14 after the first quarter and 59-36 at halftime behind Wallace, who had 22 points at the break.
Bibby, who had an ingrown toenail removed Monday, was scratched after experiencing too much pain at the morning shootaround.
Atlanta (49-28) entered the night a game ahead of Boston in the race for the No. 3 seed in the Eastern Conference. But the Hawks came to town shorthanded.
Hawks coach Mike Woodson wanted to keep Crawford in his
Jackson shot 5 of 9 for Charlotte despite a painful hamstring injury that kept him out of the fourth quarter of Saturday's loss to Chicago.
Crawford started the second half, while Teague, in his second pro start, missed his first seven shots. Smith added 18 points for the Hawks, who lost their fifth straight on the road.
Neither were impressive early. Teague struggled running the offense and the Bobcats went at Evans defensively. But the biggest problem for Atlanta was that nobody could guard Wallace despite his nagging shoulder injury.
sixth-man role, so Evans started for Johnson and rookie Jeff Teague for Bibby.
It helped the Bobcats improve to 30-9 at home as owner Michael Jordan took in the game from his front-row seat.
He kept getting easy baskets inside and in transition, scoring 14 points in the first quarter. Josh Smith picked up his third foul on the first of Wallace's two three-point plays to close the half.
"I think if we knock off the errors on the board and get some hits, we'll have a pretty good chance of beating them," Vertela said.
SOFTBALL (CONTINUED FROM 1B)
"If Missouri has weaknesses, they don't let them show," senior pitcher Sarah Vertelka said. "I think we'll find them when we play them. So far it seems that they are pretty solid all the way around."
Kansas has its obvious flaws, but Missouri's are more discreet.
Because she is from
ing about the adjustments they need to make," Smith said. "They're just seeing the pitch and trying to hit it"
Kansas needs to stay focused on itself and control what it can control, Vertelka said.
"I felt my freshman and sophomore year I was on the outside looking in." Vertalka said. "Now I really feel like I'm part of Kansas."
California, Vertelka said she didn't know much about the Kansas-Missouri rivalry coming in. But now, she said, she understands the magnitude of the rivalry.
"I think our girls are excited enough and frustrated enough that we want some wins." Vertelka said. "I don't think they are going to be expecting much from us, so I think that waves in our favor."
— Edited by Drew Anderson
The layhawks hope to be able to catch Missouri off guard, Vertelka said.
SOFTBALL
Recruit ranked 18th in ESPNU Top 25 list
Kansas softball recruit Laura Vickers was ranked No.18 in the ESPNU Top 25 recruit list last week. The shortstop from Olathe is a senior at Olathe East High School and was a member of the Kansas All-State first team this season.
Vickers was also Kansas Sunflower League Player of the Year. KC Star Player of the Year and NFCA All-America Second Team in 2008.
She will join fellow 2010-11 recruits Kendra Cullum, Colleen Hohman, Elsa Moyer, Ashley Newman and Ashley Spencer next season at Kansas.
— Zach Getz
Apartments as low as $449
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